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Number of horses die following fire at Essex stable yard

A number of horses have died following a fire at a stable yard in Essex.

Passers-by raised the alarm after they say flames coming from the stables at the Elmwood Equestrian Centre in Burnham in the early hours of Monday morning.

Firefighters were able to save some of the horses, but the rest were trapped inside and died.

The cause of the fire is being treated suspicious and an investigation is underway.

It's thought that 12 horses were killed in the incident.

"When firefighters arrived they found the fire was already well developed. The whole building was alight and the roof had collapsed," Craig McLellan from Essex Fire and Rescue Service said.

"Firefighters worked hard to tackle the fire and stop it from spreading to any other building. However, despite the best efforts of passers-by who managed to save a number of horses from the building, some horses have tragically died at the scene."